Aircraft and pylon toy



June 9, 1964 c. MERL ETAL 3,136,543

AIRCRAFT AND PYLON TOY Filed Aug. 25, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS, (4P4 fiE/PA June 9, 1964 MERL ETAL 3,136,543

AIRCRAFT AND PYLON TOY Filed Aug. 25, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 34 FIG. 3

'/IIIIIIIIIII.IIIIIIJ 'IIIIIIII I INVENTORJ. {4P4 ll'f JOSEPH J sci/64s June 9, 1964 Q MERL ETAL 3,136,543

AIRCRAFT AND PYLON TOY Filed Aug. 25, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 June 1964 c. MERL ETAL AIRCRAFT AND PYLON TOY 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 25. 1961 INVENTORS. (J/PA #542 whN iii/6,48

IfIJ/PAEKF United States Patent This invention relates to toyaircraft, and more particularly to such a toy which revolves on a balance arm about a fixed pylon, and which may be remotely controlled.

The primary object of the present inventionis to generally improve toys of the specified character. A more particular object is to provide such a toy which simulates a helicopter which may be made to realistically hover or move forward or backward, as well as ascend or descend. I Still another object is to propel the helicopter by means of a battery operated electric motor housed in its fuselage beneath the rotor, and to energize the same from dry cells of the standard flashlight type, the cells being housed in a battery case at the opposite end of the rotatable balance arm which guides the helicopter, so that the batteries act as a counterweight. There are electrical connection between the battery case and the motor, and also a connection to a remote rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor.

Other objects of the invention are to provide improved bearings for a turret at the top of the pylon for carrying the balance arm; to provide a simple yet effective slip ring and contact mechanism at the turret; and to provide improved connections between a remote control Bowden wire and the balance arm within the turret for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis and thereby tilting or changing the angle of attack of the helicopter, to cause it to hover, or to travel forward, or rearward, as desired.

To accomplish the foregoing general objects, and other more specific objects which will hereinafter appear, our invention resides in the aircraft and pylon toy elements and their relation one to another, as are hereinafter more particularly described in the following specification. The specification is accompanied by drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a helicopter and pylon toy embodying features of our invention;

FIG- 2 is an electrical circuit diagram for the same;

FIG. 3 is a vertical section taken through the remote control unit approximately in the plane of the line 3 -33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a transverse vertical section through the remote control unit taken approximately in the plane of FIG. 7 is a vertical section through the turret and turret bearing housing at the top of the pylon, taken approximately in the plane of the line 77 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a horizontal section taken approximately in the plane of the line 88 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a horizontal section taken approximately in the plane of the line 9-9 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary View taken approximately in. the plane of the line 1010 of FIG. 9; and drawn'to enlarged scale;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the freely joined linkage for connecting the remote control Bowden cable to the balance arm;

FIG. 12 is a front View of the helicopter;

FIG. 13 is a longitudinal section through the helicopter taken approximately in the plane of the line 1313 of FIG. 12;

Patented June 9, 1964 FIG. 14 is a fragmentary detail at the upper'end of the pylon tower; and v 1 FIG. 15 is a plan view of the yoke which detachably connects the helicopter to the balance arm.

Referring to'the drawing, and more particularly to FIG. 1, the assembled toy comprises a stationary pylon 12 carrying a balance arm 14 which is pivotedon the pylon for rotation about a vertical axis andfor oscillation about a horizontaltransverse axis and also, for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm. This is accomplished by means of a turret 16 rotatable on a turret bearing housing 18, the turret 16 also including a tiltable bearing 22 having horizontal trunnions received in the turret 16. A toy aircraft, inthis case a helicopter 24, is secured at one end of the balance arm 14. It includes a rotor 26 driven by a battery operated electric propulsion motor housedwithin the fuselage of the aircraft. A battery case 28 is secured at the other end of the balance arm 14, so that the batteries act also as a counterweight.

A remote rheostat 39 is provided to control the speed of the motor, and there are electrical connections between the battery case 28, the rheostat 30, and the motor in aircraft 24. The rheostat is varied by a speed control knob 32. The remote control unit preferably includes another remote control means 34 which is connected through a flexible Bowden cable slidable within a sheath 1 36 to the arm 14 at the top of the pylon, for oscillating the same about its longitudinal axis and thereby tilting theaircraft nose down or nose up. The sheath 36 preferably also houses a pair of insulated electrical conductors extending between the rheostat 30 and the turret 16.

The electrical circuit is quite simple, and is represented in FIG. 2, in which the propulsion motor 40 at one end of the balance arm 14 is connected to the battery cells 42 by the arm 14 itself. In the present example of the toy this is a tube made of aluminum. The other terminal of the battery 4-2 leads through conductor 60 to a contact 4-6 slidably engaging a stationary slip ring 48, which in turn leads through conductor 168 to one end of the rheostat posed end to end and connected in series. The casing 28 a has a compression spring 62 for engaging the outermost cell, and for urging the cells into contact with one another. The innerend of casing 28 is threaded, as shown at 64, and is screwed into a cap 66 which is molded out of a suitable insulation; The cap includes a bushing or neck 68 which is fixedly secured to one end of the tubular metal arm 14, as by meansof lock screw 70. A strip of metal 72 is secured inside cap 66 by aneyelet 74. The

end 73 of strip 72 bears against and makes contact with the inside surface of the threaded portion 64 of the metal case 28. The other end of strip 72 is wedged against and makes contact with the tubular arm 14, this contact being assured by an insulation plug 76 which is driven into the end of arm 14. Thus, the negative side of the battery is connected'through spring 62, case 28 and strip 72 to arm 14.

A headed metal pin 7 3 is driven into the insulation plug 76, with one bared end 80 (FIG. 6) of the insulation wire 60 (FIG. 5) therebetween. Thus the positive terminal of the battery is connected to wire6i) (as shown also in. FIG. 2).

5 and 6 of the drawing, the

The battery and case act as a counterbalance weight. The amount of counterbalance is adjustable by means of an additional or auxiliary weight 82 (FIG. 1) which is slidably adjustable along arm 14 to obtain the exact desired balance. Referring to FIG. 5, the weight 82 includes a resilient strip 84 which bears frictionally against the tubular arm, and which keeps the weight in its adjusted position. The strip 84 extends from one end of the weight to the other, and is received in a slot or keyway in the weight. The ends are turned outward to hold the strip in position. The strip is made of spring metal, and is bowed to bear frictionally against the arm.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawing, the remote control unit comprises a rheostat 30 with a control knob 32, bothassociated physically with a tilt control lever 34. Lever 34 is oscillatable about a stationary bushing 86, it being held on a step of the bushing by means of a disc 88 secured by a screw 90. The screw is received in the stem of knob 32, but the lever is not secured rotationally to knob 32, and the movement of one is entirely independent of the movement of the other. At its lower end, lever 34 is connected to one end of a flexible steel wire 92. This passes through a flexible sheath 36, which in the present case is a tube made of a flexible plastics material such as polyethylene. The tube 36 is held against axial movement by means of a metal thimble 94 (FIG. 4), which is indented or staked to tube 36, and which has a metal flange 96 which is received in a mating slot 98 in the base 110.

The rheostat is generally conventional, it comprising a resistance wire wound about an insulation strip in the form of a flat helix 50 which is bent to arcuate or circular shape and fixed in a mating slot of the stationary insulation body 30. The resistance wire is engaged by a slidable contact arm 52 which is secured to and rotates with the knob 32. The other end of contact 52 may be offset or bent and received in the knob, as indicated at 100. At its center or hub portion the contact 52 bears against a stationary strip 102, the other end of which passes through the insulation material 30 to provide a terminal or soldering lug 104, shown in FIG. 4. conductor 106 extends from terminal 104 through the sleeve 36. Another such conductor 108 extends from one end of the resistor 50 through the sleeve 36.

The housing of the remote control unit comprises a molded insulation base 110 and a cover 112, the latter being secured to the base by screws, one of which is shown at 114. The insulation support 36 of the rheostat is secured to base'110 by tongue and slot connections indicated at 116, and by the housing 112, as indicated at 118. The

housing is slotted at 120 (FIG. 4) to accommodate oscillation of the tilt lever 34.

In FIG. 1 it will be recalled that the tower 12 is surmounted by a turret bearing housing 18. In the present case the tower is molded out of a plastics material, in two halves divided from corner to corner, the halves being secured together by screws. The bearing housing has a square base 122 which is secured to the top of the tower.

The turret is shown in detail lin FIGS. 7-11, referring to which, the turret bearing housing 18 with its square base 122 is secured to a bottom plate 124, as by means of screws, not shown. The body 18 is frusto-conical, and is molded integrally with a reentrant outer bearing race 126. This is stepped near the top to receive a ring of ball bearings 128, and at the bottom to receive another smaller ring of ball bearings 130. These in turn receive the stem 132 of rotatable turret 16. The lower end of stem 132 receives a downwardly convex spring washer 133 which is slid upward into position and which prevents the turret from lifting out of its bearing.

The turret 16 is made of two parts, an upper part 134 providing the upstanding bearings 136 for the horizontal trunnions 138 of a somewhat drum-shaped tiltable bearing member 22. The lower part 146 of the turret is secured to the upper part by screws 142. The lower part 140 is molded integrally with the stem 132, and is. also A thin flexible insulated 4, arranged to carry the electrical contacts 46 and 56 previously referred to. A

These contacts are best shown in FIG. 9 and are preferably made of thin resilient metal such as Phosphor bronze. They are eyeletted at one end to the turret, as shown at 142 and 144, and are held between molded projections 146. At their opposite or free ends, they are bent downward and pass through holes or windows 148 in the circular horizontal bottom 146 of the turret. By disposing them as shown, they may be made of maximum length for gentle yet dependable contact.

The top wall 156 (FIG. 7) of the turret bearing housing 18 carries two circular rings of sheet metal indicated at 48 and 54 in FIGS. 7 and 9. These rings have soldering lugs shown at 152 in FIG. 7, and the ends of the flexible conductors 106 and 168, previously referred to, are electrically connected to the lugs 152. Similar but shorter lugs (not shown) are provided at intervals around the rings and pass through slots in top wall 150 to anchor the rings in position.

The stationary ends of the contacts 46 and 56 (FIG. 9) are bent upward to form soldering lugs 154. Thin flexible wires shown as broken lines are connected to these lugs and extend upward through hole 57 and then within the drum shaped arm housing 22, with suitable slack, around the part 170. The wires are concealed within drum-shaped housing 22. The wires then enter through a hole in the balance arm 14, as shown at 156 in FIG. 8. These wires become the conductors 58 and 60 shown in FIG. 2, which extend in opposite directions through the balance arm to the motor and to the battery case respectively.

The end of the flexible sheath 36 of the Bowden cable is shown at the bottom of FIG. 7. The cable extends to the tower and preferably through one corner of the tower, as shown in FIG. 1, and thence upward to the top of the tower where it is secured, as by means of a metal thimble 158 which is anchored to both the sleeve 36 and to a bushing 160 integral with the bottom piece 124 of the turret bearing housing.

The drum-shaped tiltable bearing 22 is molded of two parts. One part 162 (FIG. 8) includes the trunnions 138 and a long bearing sleeve 164 for the tubular arm 14. The other part 166 provides the opposite face of the drum shaped housing, and includes a short bushing or arm bearing 168. These parts are secured together by a screw indicated at 170 in FIGS. 1 and 7. The bottom of the housing 22 is cut away as indicated at 172 (FIG. 7).

In FIGS.'7 and 8 it will be noted that the balance arm 14 is offset sideward from the axis of the turret. This is done to facilitate the remote control connection for tilting the aircraft.

In FIG. 7 the upper end of the Bowden wire 92 is connected at 174 to the lower end of a cylindrical rod 176. This passes slidably through the stem 132 of the turret. A finger 178 passes transversely through the arm 14, and is grooved as shown at 180 in FIG. 11 to receive a spring clip or snap washer to hold the finger in position after it has been passed diametrically through the tubular Km 14. At its opposite end the finger is bifurcated, as shown at 182 (FIGS. 8 and 11), to somewhat loosely receive the upper end of an upright link 184. The lower end of link 184 is so connected to rod 176 as to afford relative rotation, and in the present case there is a ball and socket joint. The outer end of the bifurcation at 182 is closed slightly after receiving the necked upper end of link 184, thus anchoring the sme together, but with a loose fit whichagain acts as a universal joint or free connection.

It will be evident that with this arrangement the balance arm 14 and turret 16 may turn freely without twisting the Bowden wire 92. However a lengthwise motion of the Bowden wire causes tilting of arm 14 about its longitudinal axis within the arm bearing sleeves 164, 168. The tilting motion of finger 178 is limited by appropriate stops 179 (FIG. 7) at the top and bottom, these being molded integrally with the drum-shaped housing 22.

The helicopter may be described with reference to FIGS.- 12 and 13 of the drawing. The body or fuselage is molded of two halves which meet in edge-to-edge relation, one of the meeting edges being shown in FIG. 13. The usual locating dowels and holes may be provided around the edge as shown. The helicopter is provided with forward landing wheels 190 held at'the lower ends of a bent wire support 192, and rear landing wheels 194 carried at the ends of a bent wire support 196. The body ofthe toy, as molded, includes appropriate projections 198 The forward end of the fuselage has apiece of transparent plastic 25 (FIG. 13 which acts as a simulated windshield, and throughwhich figures simulating a pilot and passenger may be seen seated at 27, these figures which meet end to end and which anchor the wire supports in position, the lower ends of said supports passing through transverse slots in the bottom of the fuselage.

The electric motor 40 is of a type commonly used in toys, the field including a permanent magnet located at 200. The lower end bearing of the motor is received in a support 202, while the upper end bearing of the motor is received in a support 203. These are molded integrally with the sides of the fuselage, and meet in edge to edge relation. The projection at 260 prevents bodily rotation of the motor. The shaft of motor 294 carries the hub 2% of the rotor. This hub is molded of plastics material, and the rotor blades 26, which may be made of sheet fiber, are eyeletted theretoat diametrically opposed points indicated at 208. The hub 206 imparts an opposite twist to the two blades, which may be made of one strip of material apertured at the center to receive the motor shaft.

The forward part of the fuselage over the motor is surmounted by a simulated rotor bearing 210. However, this is a boss or neck of large diameter inside and is not actually a bearing for the shaft, thelatter being rotatably supported by the motor bearings, which in turn are held by the molded supports 202, 203. The neck 210 receives a support yoke 212, shown sepanately in FIG. 15. This is stamped of heavy gage sheet metal, and its bifurcations provided pivot pins 214 which are received in mating holes formed diametrically on opposite sides of the neck 210, in a fore and aft direction, that is, longitudinally of the aircraft. The yoke 212 is preferably bent as shown in FIG. 12, and the helicopter normallyremains upright because it is suspended at a height well above the fuselage and motor. Of course it changes angle relative to the yoke 212 and balance arm 14 6218 the helicopter rises from ground level to maximum height, and also it may swing out somewhat when flying at high speed.

The end of arm 14 is flattened as shown at 214 to snugly receive the fiat end 216 of yoke 21. A single screw 218 passes through the flattened'tube and the yoke to detachably secure the parts together. It will be evident that tilting of arm 14 about its longitudinal axis will cause a corresponding tilt of the helicopter in nose-down or noseup direction, whereupon a component of the rotor lift causes either forward or rearward travel of the helicopter.

For electrical connection one brush of the motor is com nected by a short length of flexible wire 220 (FIG. 13) which extends upward and then sideward through a hole in neck 210 to an eyelet 222 (FIGS. 12 and where it is soldered to the metal yoke 212. The latter is electrically connected to the metal balance arm 14.

The other brush of the motor 40 is connected by a short flexible conductor 224 (FIG. 13) to a socket or spring contact at 226, which is secured at an opening in the side of the fuselage below the neck 210. Just short of the flattened end 214 (FIG. 12) of balance arm 14 a hole is provided at the bottom, through which the end 228 of a conductor (58 in FIG. 2) emerges This is tipped with a rigid pin 230 which is readily detachably plugged into the socket 226 (FIG. 13) when assembling the helicopter to the end of balance arm 14.

The detachability of the helicopter at one end, and of the battery case at the other end, as well as the knockdown construction of the power 12, facilitates packaging of the toy for shipment, storage, and sale.

being omitted in the present drawing.

The tail of the fuselage has an upstanding arm. 232 which carries a transparent disc234 to suggestin appearance the usual small propeller which holds the helicopter against spin. i

The method by which the bottom of the turret bearing housing is secured to the top of the tower may be described with reference to FIG. 14. A corner of the square base 122 of the frusto-conical bearing 18 has an offset or somewhat hook-shaped element 230 molded integrally with it. This snugly receives the flanges 232 at the top of the tower 12. It will be recalled that the tower 12 is molded in two halves which are secured together by horizontal screws at opposite corner edges, and at the time the halves are secured together the flanges" 232 engage the corner hooks 230, thus securing the square base 122 to the top of the tower.

It is believed that the construction, method of assembly, and method of use of our improved toy, as well as the advantages thereof, will be apparent from the foregoing detailed description. It will also be apparent that while We have shown and described the invention in a preferred form, changes may be made in the structure shown, without departing from the scope of the invention as sought to be'defined in the following claims. For convenience the claims refer to the slip rings as'beingstatic-nary and the contacts as revolving, but these may be reversed.

We claim:

1. An aircraft toycomprising a stationary plyon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about ahorizontal transverse axis, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery case secured to andcarried by the other end of the arm for movement therewith, whereby the cells act as a counterweight, a battery operated electric motor to drive the toy, and electrical connections between the battery case and the motor.

2. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electricpropulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, and electrical connections between the battery case at one end of the arm and the motor at the other end of the arm.

3. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, a battery case at the other end of the arm wherebythe cells act as a counterweight, electrical connections between the battery case at one end of the arm and the motor at the other end of the arm, and a remote control means associated therewith and connected througha flexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis.

4. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving the rotor of the helicopter, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, a remote rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor, and electrical connections between the battery case at one end of the arm and the remote rheostat and the motor at the other end of the arm.

5. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a verticalaxis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving the rotor for the helicopter, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, a remote rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor, electrical connections between the battery case at one end of the arm and the remote rheostat and the motor at the other end of the arm, and another remote control means associated with the rheostat and connected through a flexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal 6. Anaircra'ft toy comprising a stationary pylon, an arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft, a battery case secured to the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stem of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said pylon having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom wall of said turret having a pair of long resilient leaf spring contact springs which are secured above and extend along said bottom wall and the free ends of which pass downward through holes in said bottom wall and rest onsaid slip rings, electrical connections from said contacts to the aforesaid motor and to said battery case, and'electrical connections from said stationary slip rings to a remote control device controlling the electrical power supply to said motor.

7. A11 aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, an arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft, a battery case secured to the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stern of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said pylon having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom wall of said turret having a pair of long resilient leaf spring contact springs which are secured above and extend along said bottom wall and thefree ends of which pass downward through holes in said bottom wall and rest on said slip rings, electrical connections from said contacts to the aforesaid motor and to said battery case, electrical connections from said stationary slip rings to a remote control device controlling the electrical power supply to said motor, and another remote control means associated therewith and connected through a flexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the same about its longitudinal axis.

8. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon having a turret with an upright stem and a turret bearing housing, a balance arm pivoted for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving its rotor blades, a battery case secured to the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said 'pylon having ball bearings receiving the upright stem of the rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said turret bearing housing having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom wall of said turret having a pair of long resilient leaf spring contact springs which are secured above and extend along said bottom wall and the free ends of which pass downwardthrough holes in said bottom wall and rest on said slip rings, electrical connections from said contacts to the aforesaid motor and to said battery case, and electrical connections from said stationary slip rings to a remote control device controlling the electrical power supply to said motor.

9. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon having a turret with an upright stem and a turret bearing housing, a balance arm pivoted for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving its rotor blades, a battery case secured to the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having ball bearings receiving the upright stern of the rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable hearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said turret bearing housing having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, thebottom wall of said turret having a pair of long resilient leaf spring contact springs which are secured above and extend along said bottom wall and the free ends of which pass downward through holes in said bottom wall and rest on said slip rings, electrical connections from said contacts to the aforesaid motor and to said battery case, electrical connections from said stationary slip rings to a remote control device controlling the electrical power supply to said motor, and another remote control means associated therewith connected through a flexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the same about its longitudinal axis.

10. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stem of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said pylon having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the battery case and the contact springs and the motor, a remote speed control rheostat, and electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor.

11. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm,-a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, 'a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stem of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said pylon having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the battery case and the contact springs and themotor, a remote speed control rheostat, electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor, and another remote control means associated with said speed control means and connected through a rtexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis.

12. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon having a turret with an upright stern and a turret bearing housing, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving the rotor of the helicopter a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having ball bearings for the upright stem of the rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the foresaid arm, the top of said turret bearing housing having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free'ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the battery case and the contact springs and the motor, a remote speed control rheostat, and electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor.

13. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon having a turret with an upright stem and a turret bearing housing, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal-axis of the arm, a helicopter at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said helicopter for driving the rotor of the helicopter, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having ball bearings for the upright stem of the rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said turret bearing housing having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the battery case and the contact springs and the motor, a remote speed control rheostat, electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheoremote control means associated with said speed control rheostat and connected through a flexible Bowden cable to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis. 8

14. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stern of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, a remote control means connected through a flexible Bowden cable and linkage to the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis, said linkage including a cylindrical rod of substantial length passing slidably through the aforesaid stem of the turret, the Bowden cable being connected to the lower end of said rod for moving the same vertically, an upright link at the top of the rod, the lower end of said link being connected to the rod by a ball and socket connection, and the upper end of the link,

being connected by means of a universal connection to a finger projecting sideward from the arm, whereby rotation of the arm and turret does not twist the Bowden cable, said arm being offset from the axis of the turret to so accommodate the aforesaid finger that the rod and link are coaxial with the stem of the turret.

15. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a

balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a propulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, the top of said pylon having bearings for the upright stem of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said turret bearing housing having two'concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the contact springs and the motor, a remote speed control rheostat,-electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheostat for controlling the speed of .the motor, and another remote control means associated with said speed control rheostat and connected through a flexible Bowden cable and linkage to the arm at thetop of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis, said linkage including a cylindrical rod of substantial length passing slidably through the aforesaid stern of the turret, the

Bowden cable being connected to the lower end of said rod for moving the same vertically, an upright link at the top of the rod, the lower end of said link being conversal connection to a finger projecting sideward from the arm, whereby rotation ofthe arm and turret does not twist the Bowden cable, said arm being oifset from the axis of the turret to so accommodate the aforesaid finger that the rod and link are coaxial With the stem of the turret. v

16. An aircraft toy comprising a stationary pylon, a balance arm pivoted on said pylon for rotation about a vertical axis and for oscillation about a horizontal transverse axis and for oscillation about the longitudinal axis of the arm, an aircraft at one end of said arm, a battery operated electric propulsion motor in said aircraft for driving the same, a battery case at the other end of the arm whereby the cells act as a counterweight, the top of said pylon having bearingsfor the upright stem of a rotatable turret, said turret having horizontal bearings for the two opposed trunnions of a tiltable bearing receiving the aforesaid arm, the top of said pylon having two concentric stationary metal slip rings, the bottom of said turret having a pair of resilient contact springs the free ends of which rest on said slip rings, electrical connections between the battery case and the contact springs and the motor, a remote-speed control rheostat, electrical connections from the stationary slip rings to the rheostat for controlling the speed of the motor, and another remote control means associated with said speed control rheostat and connected through a flexible Bowden cable and linkage to'the arm at the top of the pylon for oscillating the arm about its longitudinal axis, said linkage including a cylindrical rod of substantial length passing slidably through the aforesaid stem of the turret, the Bowden cable being connected to the lower end of said rod for moving the same vertically, an upright link at the top of the rod, the lower end of said link being connected to the. rod by a ball and socket connection, the upper end of the link being connected by means of a universal connection to a finger projecting sideward from the arm, whereby rotation of the arm and turret does not twist the Bowden cable, said arm being offset from the axis of the turret to accommodate the aforesaid finger.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,131,222 Dale Sept. 27, 1938 2,885,206 Ensley May 5, 1959 2,942,880 Bennett June 28, 1960 

1. AN AIRCRAFT TOY COMPRISING A STATIONARY PLYON, A BALANCE ARM PIVOTED ON SAID PYLON FOR ROTATION ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS AND FOR OSCILLATION ABOUT A HORIZONTAL TRANSVERSE AXIS, AN AIRCRAFT AT ONE END OF SAID ARM, A BATTERY CASE SECURED TO AND CARRIED BY THE OTHER END OF THE ARM FOR MOVEMENT THEREWITH, WHEREBY THE CELLS ACT AS A COUNTERWEIGHT, A BATTERY OPERATED ELECTRIC MOTOR TO DRIVE THE TOY, AND ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE BATTERY CASE AND THE MOTOR. 